One of the most precious truths that I have learned through personal experience and Bible study is that “God is not our protector against trouble, but our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
This truth is reinforced by the three affirmations of faith found in Psalm 46. These affirmations of faith have frequently encouraged and strengthened me in both my times of praise to God as well as in my times of petitioning God’s help.
Bible scholars believe Psalm 46 was written by King Hezekiah to commemorate God’s great victory over Sennacherib. The Assyrian king thought he had Hezekiah caught in Jerusalem like a bird in a cage. But Hezekiah prayed, God spoke, and the enemy was defeated. In one night, an angel killed 185,000 enemy soldiers.
Affirmation One – “I will not fear because I have a refuge.” (Read vv.1-3). In every crisis and chaos, God provides refuge and strength. In times of crisis, we turn to whom or what we trust. To what or whom do you trust in times of crisis?
Earlier, the psalmist said, “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.” (Ps. 9:9-10).
Affirmation Two – “I will not faint because I have a river. (Read vv. 4-7). God provides a river of resources in his city during threatening times of despair and evil attack. “God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day.” (v.5).
All of nature depends on hidden resources. The trees send their roots deep into the earth to find the hidden streams of water. Likewise, we Christians need to sink our spiritual roots into God’s stream of resources that keep us from fainting in despair and defeat.
Affirmation Three – “I will not fret because I see the rainbow.” (Read vv.8-11). What is that rainbow?It is the revelation of God’s sovereignty and majestic glory over all the earth.It is seeing God exalted and overarching all storms of uncertainty and tragedies. The rainbow claims it to be so. There is no need to fret, because “The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”
This truth became very real to me and my family during one of our return trips home after visiting family in Phoenix, AZ. On a Monday, June 25, we left Phoenix in a VW Camper van that we agreed to drive to the New York seaport to be shipped to Africa.
We enjoyed the long drive through beautiful Salt River Canyon and then by late afternoon, stormy winds were blowing as we entered New Mexico. While eating supper in a restaurant, a very windy rainstorm delayed our return to vehicle and traveling. As we entered onto the interstate a bright and beautiful double rainbow appeared before us.
The evening soon grew darker, and it was then I discovered that the vehicle had no headlights. Racing against the deepening darkness we were unsuccessful in finding a garage that was still open, and so stayed the night at motel. This was the beginning of troubles and frustration.
The next afternoon, Tuesday, the engine quit, and we had to be towed to Amarillo, Texas. By then it was late evening and we had to stay the night a short distance from garage.
Wednesday was a day of delay and disappointment, and finally a diagnosis on Thursday. The van needed a new engine short block. This had to be ordered from Houston and should arrive sometime Monday and take about 2 days to install. The lack of urgency on part of garage service department frustrated me and family.
However, a phone call to the Mennonite church in Amarillo, connected us to the pastor who just happened to own a motel. The pastor and his wife graciously provided a room, meals, and a car for us to enjoy our stay while waiting for the van to be repaired, which took several days longer then promised.
Finally, we were on our way home by Tuesday evening, July 3, and behold, as we left the city limits of Amarillo, traveling east, a beautiful rainbow appears in front of us.
It was then God’s promise of presence, protection, and provision, a promise that speaks of peace amid trouble, was revealed to us in a very personal way. The rainbow stands guard over the storm. It is God’s name written in the sky for all to see and spells out “God with us” to remind and renew our faith and trust in his presence and power.
I believe God placed those two rainbows at the beginning and ending of our nine-day journey through trouble and blessing as an experiential teaching for me and my family about God’s enduring faithfulness.
So it is that I read “Be still, and know that I am God” to mean, “Relax. I am God and I can manage the situation.”
And so, I repeat what I said at the beginning, “God is not our protector against trouble, but He is our refuge and strength, our ever-present help in trouble.
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“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – August 4, 2021
Ray M. Geigley
Healing Rays of Righteousness 
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